At the Kazan Arena Stadium, where the Opening Ceremony of the Games is taking place at the moment,Vladimir Putinhad a meeting with representatives of the Russian national team – he was awaited here by more than 20 young athletes who represent our men's and women's teams almost in every sport. After welcoming the athletes, the head of state asked what mood they were in and how they felt.

"Are we going to win?" asked the President. The athletes' reply was that they will do everything possible. "At home we don't expect from you anything but victory," noted the head of state. At the end of this brief meeting, the President wished the athletes every success and invited them to watch the Opening Ceremony. Vladimir Putinwas photographed together with the representatives of the national team, and then he proceeded to the stands in order to participate in the official ceremony.

San Miguel Corporation (SMC) supports FESSAP projects

Ramon S. Ang

Taken on 17 May 2013 Friday, Pasig City, Metro Manila San Miguel Corporation (SMC), through the efforts of its amiable chief executive Ramon S. Ang, is extending its full support to the Federation of School Sports Association of the Philippines, which is sending a 76-member delegation to the 27th Summer Universiade in Kazan, Russian Federation from July 6-17. Through the past decades, San Miguel Corporation has been a major proponent of sports development in the country through its various sponsorship of various local and foreign sporting events. It has been involved in numerous grassroots-oriented sports programs through the years and the much-respected Mr. Ang is known to be a strong advocate of youth sports. The FESSAP is the country's lone university sports federation that is officially recognized by the International University Sports Federation (FISU), which organizes the participation to the Summer Universiade and Winter Universiade every two years. The prestigious multi-sport Universiade features the most prominent university athletes in the world and is considered the Olympics of the university competitions. "The FESSAP is strongly committed to the development of youth sports in the country," said David Ong, the president of the privately-funded university sports federation. "The athletes we send to international events not only take part in sports competitions but also benefit from the cultural exchanges among the youth from other countries." "For the Kazan Universiade, the FESSAP is deeply honored by the presence of Mr. Ang and San Miguel Corporation in our support group. Once again, SMC has extended its support for Philippine sports, especially to our youthful athletes. The FESSAP is truly thankful of their support." The Philippine delegation will be led by chef de mission Antonio L. Tiu, the president of AgriNurture Inc. (ANI) and one of the Ten Outstanding Young Men (TOYM) awardees in 2011. FESSAP Deputy Secretary -General and Philippine Bodybuilders Federation (PBBF) vice president, Col. Ariel Querubin, will be the Philippines’ flag bearer during the Kazan Universiade opening parade. Two years ago in Shenzhen, People's Republic of China, a record total of 152 countries sent athletes to the biennial event. Only 65 countries brought home a medal and the Philippines is one of them - a silver courtesy of taekwondo jin Samuel Thomas Harper Morrison of Far Eastern University. Nearly 200 countries are expected to take part in the 2013 Kazan Universiade and expected to grace the opening ceremony is Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Antonio L. Tiu, Head of Delegation

Ramon S. Ang, "the Godfather"

Russia President Vladimir Putin

From Left to right: Christian D. Tan, FESSAP Vice President; Col. Ariel Querubin, FESSAP Deputy Secretary General; Ramon S. Ang is shown a recipient of Plaque of Recognition from FESSAP president David U. Ong,; and Miss Jeane Monteverde, FESSAP Treasurer. This was held at the SMC office in Pasig City, Metro Manila. Photo by Henry T. Vargas

At left is Benny D. Antiporda, president of National Press Club, Mr. Ramon S. Ang and Col. Ariel Querubin

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David Ong (3rd from left), President of the Federation of School Sports Association of the Philippines (FESSAP) designated Antonio Tiu (4th from left), president of AgriNurture Inc (ANI), as Philippines' Head of Delegation to the 27th Summer Universiade in Kazan, Russia from July 6 to 17, 2013. Others FESSAP officials from left are Richard Cuartero, Teresita Abundo, David Ong, Antonio Tiu, Dennis Sia as Mr. Tiu's assistant, Dr. Diosdado Amante, Prof. Robert Milton Calo, and Christian Tan. Photo by Henry Vargas

Antonio L. Tiu (center in red shirt), designated Head of Delegation to the 27th Summer Universiade in Kazan, Russia, with David Ong (4th from left), FESSAP President, appointed Col. Ariel Querubin (holding the flag, 3rd from right) as the Philippines’ Flag Bearer to this spectacular event during a simple dinner hosted by the Federation of School Sports Association of the Philippines (FESSAP) recently in Manila. In photo from left to right are Prof. Robert Milton Calo, Dennis Sia (Assistant to Antonio Tiu), Richard Cuartero, David Ong, Antonio Tiu, Col. Ariel Querubin, Teresita Abundo, and Dr. Diosdado Amante. Photo by Genie Villota

Philippine Flag Bearer to the 27th Summer Universiade inKazan, Russia

Col. Ariel Porfirio O. Querubin

Col. Ariel Porfirio Querubin was recently appointed by the Federation of School Sports Association of the Philippines (FESSAP) through the initiative of the designated Head of Delegation as the Philippines’ Flag Bearer of the 27th Summer Universiade in Kazan, Russia in July 2013. The Flag-Bearer concern, FESSAP President David U. Ong has strongly recommended to Antonio L. Tiu, Head of Delegation of the Philippine Delegation, Col. Ariel Porfirio O. Querubin, FESSAP Deputy Secretary General, to the 27th Summer Universiade in Kazan, Russia Federation from July 6th to 17th, 2013. Col. Querubin is also the Vice President of the FESSAP-affiliated Philippine Federation of Body Builders Inc (PFBB). More importantly, he is currently one of only two men to be awarded the “Medal of Valor” by the Philippine government. The highest military honor was bestowed on him for his bravery in actual combat and distinguished service to his countrymen. Dennis Sia of AgriNurture Inc (ANI), was designated by Antonio Tiu as his assistant. Witnessing the appointment of Col. Querubin, in attendance are the FESSAP Executive Committee members led by FESSAP President David Ong, Executive Vice President Prof. Robert Milton Calo, and Vice Presidents Christian Tan, Teresita Abundo, Richard Cuartero, and Dr. Diosdado Amante.

Senator Antonio F. Trillanes Iv (4th from right) Senate Committee on Sports, confirmed the appointment of Mr. Antonio L. Tiu of AgriNurture Inc (ANI) as the Official Head of Delegation of the Philippines to the 27th Summer Universiade in Kazan, Russia in July 2013. Present from left to right are Prof. Robert Milton Calo, FESSAP President David Ong, Jeane Monteverde, Mr. Tiu, Sen. Trillanes, FESSAP Chairman Alvin Tai Lian, FESSAP Honorary President Richard Ang and Trillanes' Chief of Staff Rolando Averilla.
Photo taken by Henry Vargas on August 28, 2012 at Legend Restaurant in Pasay City. Photo by Henry Vargas

Head of Delegation to the 27th Summer Universiade 2013

Antonio L. Tiu

ANTONIO L. TIUBy: Henry L. LiaoPhoto by: Henry Vargas

At age 37, AgriNurture Inc. (ANI) Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Antonio L. Tiu has a full life ahead.

A native of San Marcelino, Zambales, Tiu took up his secondary studies at Chiang Kai Shek College but lost his father to colon cancer when he was 19. The loss of his dad forced Tiu, the eldest among three siblings, to learn the art of survival quickly.

To support the family, Tiu, a vegetarian since the death of his dad, labored as a working student at De La Salle University where he took up Business Management.

Tiu subsequently completed his Master’s degree at the University of New South Wales and is currently matriculating at University of the Philippines Diliman for a Doctorate degree.

Tiu’s continuing studies have proved beneficial.

A hands-on entrepreneur, Tiu, along with his partner Peter Yang, set up Mabuhay 2000 Enterprises Inc. in February 1997. It was renamed to AgriNurture Inc. in 2008.

Persistence and perseverance, coupled with his innovative and creative approach to this seldom-tapped field, were his formula for success as his business steadily grew to become among the most profitable in the industry.

ANI is now the country’s leading mango exporter to the world with its well-known Carabao Mango.

Even after reaching the pinnacle of success with his designation as one of the 2011 Ten Most Outstanding Young Men (TOYM) awardees in awarding ceremonies presided by President Benigno Simeon Aquino III held at the Malacañang Palace, the soft-spoken Tiu declares that the best has yet to come in the field of agriculture.

“There’s much room for improvement,” said Tiu, who has put up post-harvest facilities all over the Philippines with ANI’s distribution hub located at Pulilan, Bulacan. “We have yet to unleash our potential in agri-business.”

The saying “all work and no play makes Juan a dull boy” is also sensible enough to convince Tiu to engage in sports in his spare time.

Not known to many, the 6-foot Tiu was a member of the Chiang Kai Shek College volleyball team during his high school days.

Nowadays, he is dabbling into basketball, the country’s national pastime, not as a player, though, but as a team owner.

Big Chill, the commercial team currently owned by Tiu, saw action in the Philippine Basketball Association Developmental league, or PBA D-League. The Super Chargers are managed by Tiu’s younger brother James, who himself once suited up for the CKSC basketball varsity. Big Chill finished second in the PBA D-League last year, losing to powerhouse NLEX in the Finals.

A sportsman in his own right, Tiu was recently named by the Federation of School Sports Association of the Philippines (FESSAP) as the Chef de Mission of the Philippine delegation to the 27th Summer Universiade in Kazan, Russia in July next year.

Held biennially, the FISU-sanctioned Universiade is an Olympics-type competition among the best university athletes around the world.

In the 2011 Universiade in Shenzhen, People’s Republic of China, a record-setting 152 countries, including sports powers United States, Russia and Japan, saw action.

The Philippines was one of only 65 countries to capture a medal (gold, silver or bronze), snaring a silver through taekwondo jin Samuel Morrison of Far Eastern University.

“It’s an honor, a great honor, to head the country in such a prestigious sports event,” said Tiu. “Not everybody has the opportunity to do that. I am deeply honored. While it’s a big, big challenge, we hope to do well in Kazan. The dream of every Filipino to excel in an international sports competition we hope to fulfill in our own small way.”

Tiu knows whereof he speaks. From the field of agri business to the sporting arena, success is attainable if only a team works as one.

It all starts with selfless leadership, one that Tiu provides to his various businesses.

For Tiu, there are no short cuts to success. It’s all about hard work and dedication.

So, at 18 one of the world’s brightest young players, has agreed to represent the country in the prestigious sports and cultural competition scheduled July 6-17, 2013 in Kazan, Republic of Tatarstan, Russia.

“I’m looking forward to play in the 27th Summer Universiade for the first time and represent the country again,” said So in an e-mail message from Webster University in St. Louis, Missouri where he is currently enrolled as a freshman student.

So, now a member of the ‘Magnificent 8’ of SPICE, said no less than four-time women's world champion Susan Polgar has given him the green light to play and represent the country in the Kazan Universiade.

Federation of School Sports Association of the Philippines (FESSAP) president David Ong and Philippine delegation chef de mission Antonio Tiu welcomed the addition of So to the Philippine delegation to the Universiade.

“It’s a big honor for all of us. His entry is a tremendous boost to the Philippine delegation to the Universiade,” said Ong when informed about So’s decision to represent the country in the biennial competition dubbed as the ‘Olympics’ of university athletes.

So’s formal confirmation came after the country, thru FESSAP, was officialy admitted by the Federation Internationale du Sport Universitaire (FISU) as one of the participating countries in the Universiade.

The admission was relayed in a formal communication sent to FESSAP by FISU from its headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland.

In Kazan, So is expected to play against the world's leading university players.

“Being a world power in chess, Russia is expected to field its best university players in Kazan,” said Ong. “The Russians also know a lot about Wesley (So). They still remember him for his sensational upset victories over (former world championship candidate) GM Vassily Ivanchuk of Ukraine in the World Cup,” he added.

A FESSAP official said host countries in the Universiade usually do everything to excel in sports where they are traditionally strong.

This was evident during the 2011 Shenzhen Universiade where GM Li Chao of China topped the chess competition.

In Kazan, the Philippines will participate in at least 11 sports -- 10 compulsory and one optional -- in the two-week long sports and cultural festival.

The 11 sports to be participated in by the Filipinos are athletics, archery, badminton, basketball, beach volleyball, chess, fencing, swimming, table tennis, tennis and weightlifting.

Last year, the Philippines brought home a silver medal in taekwondo courtesy of Samuel Thomas Morrison of Far Eastern University in Shenzhen, China.

The 21-year-old Morrison, who rose to prominence by winning the gold medal in the 2010 Korea Open, swept his first four assignments before losing 5-9 to Kim Hun of South Korea in their gold medal match in the men’s -68 kg event.

Morrison reached the final by winning over Wendell Grouby of US Virgin Islands by withdrawal in the round of 32, Christopher Dubois of France, 13-10, in the round-of-16, Almas Mukamanov of Kazakhstan, 10-2, in the quarterfinal, and Idulio Islas of Mexico, 5-4, in the semifinal.

Taekwondo, however, is not included in Kazan.

The Universiade is considered as the second biggest sporting event next only to the Olympic Games.

Kazan, now considered as the ‘Sports Capital’ of Russia, was chosen over Vigo, Spain as host of the event which is expected to attract more than 13,500 athletes and officials from a record 170 countries.

About 100,000 tourists and fans from Russia and abroad will also visit Kazan both to support their countries and discover the millennial historical heritage of the city, its rich culture and modern infrastructure, according to the official FISU website.

Out of the 50 sports venues that will be used during the Universiade, 30 are newly-built.

Twenty-seven venues are already operational and at the moment they are used by pupils of sports schools, of secondary school as well as students of the higher education establishments of the city.

It is notable that about 20 venues will be used by educational institutions after the Universiade.

A UNESCO World Heritage Site, Kazan will also host the 2015 World Aquatics Championship and the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

Kazan is the capital and largest city in the Republic of Tatarstan, Russia near Europe.

The city is one of the largest economic, scientific and cultural centres in the Russian Federation. It has the biggest student community in the region.

The Universiade will also be held in Gwangju, Korea in 2015 and Chinese-Taipei in 2017.

AFTER getting the nod of chess champion GM Wesley So, the Federation of School Sports Association of the Philippines (FESSAP) will step up its search for the country's representatives in other select sports in the 27th Summer Universiade scheduled July 6-27, 2013 in Kazan, Russia.

FESSAP president David Ong said the Philippine Swimming League (PSL), headed by former Sen. Nikki Coseteng and Olympian Susan Papa, is now holding the third of a series of qualifying tournaments to determine the swimmers who will represent the country in the prestigious sports and cultural competition dubbed as the 'Olympic Games' of university athletes. Close to 400 swimmers from 45 clubs, including members of the national team under the Philippine Aquatics Sports Association (PASA)| will vie for 24 more slots at stake in the third Coseteng Cup swimming championships at the Rizal Memorial Pool this weekend.

The 24 qualifiers will join 40 other swimmers who have already qualified on the strength of their strong showings in the previous two qualiying events -- the second Coseteng Cup and the National All-Star Challenge. "As in the 2011 Universaide held in Shenzhen, China, the FESSAP and the PSL would like to send only the best swimmers to represent the country in Kazan next year," said Coseteng during the weekly SCOOP sa Kamayan session at Kamayan Restaurant in Padre Faura.

"We have also decided to allow as many swimmers as possible, including those belonging to PASA, to participate in the qualifying tournaments to enable us to send only the best," added Coseteng, also the president of the Diliman Preparatory School.

Coseteng and Papa, who both personally accompanied the swimmers during the 2011 Shenzhen Universiade, said the opportunity to carry the country's colors in the Kazan Universiade and competing against the world's best student-athletes is "truly a once-in-a-lifeitime experience." "In the second Coseteng Cup, we even have to turn away some 150 registrants.

If we accomodate all of them, we will not be able to finish in time due to the number of events to be contested," explained Papa, whose year-round swimming program under PSL serves as training ground for national swimmers. The PSL is the only swimming body recognized by FESSAP. FESSAP, on the other hand, is the country's only sports association recognized by the Federation Internationale du Sport Universitaire (FISU), the Lausanne, Switzerland-based body organizing the Universiade every two years.

Among those who have already made it to the Universiade are the country's newest swimming sensation Claire Adorna, winner of four gold medals in the recent China-Philippine Youth Goodwill Exchange; Delia Angela Cordero, most outstanding swimmer in the recent UAAP; Erika Lukang, Jacklyn Junio,Renzo Manzo, Gisan Berino. Orpheus Magbanlac, Michael Godoy and Karlo Salonga.

Last week, So became the biggest name to be included in the Kazan-bound Filipino delegation to be supported by San Miguel Corporation, Healthy Options, H2O Technologies Philippines Inc, AgriNurture Inc (ANI), Bestank and Cobra Energy Drink.

Earlier, the women's beach volleyball pair of Jennifer Manzano and Cindy Benitez of La Salle-Dasmarinas and weightlifter Kaye Rojas of the University of San Jose Recoletos also earned their tickets to the Kazan Universiade.

So, now a freshman student at the Webster University in St.Louis,Missouri, has already agreed to represent the country in the Russian-dominated sport of chess.

In Shenzhen, the Philippines was represented by Jan Roldan Oriendo and Christmar Tuason (male) and Angelica Dilim (female). Oriendo finished with 3.5 points, Tuason wound up with three points and Dilim ended up with 3.5 points. Manzano and Benitez clinched the Universiade ticket by topping the final leg of the 2012 Petron Beach Volleyball Circuit held in Lingayen, Pangasinan last month.

This will be the second straight time that Manzano will carry the country’s colors in the Universiade. In the 2011 Shenzhen (China) Universiade, Manzano teamed-up with Satchell Senupre to reach the round-of-17 against the pair of Varapatsorn Radarong and Tannaratha Udomchavee of Thailand.

The Filipinas, however, lost to their Thai counterparts, 42-18 ( 21-8, 21-10). Rojas crowned herself as the women’s 48-kgs champion in the 1st National Students Weightlifting Championship hosted by the Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation, Inc (CESAFI). She defeated entries from Universidad de Zamboanga, Guagua National Colleges of Pampanga, Holy Name University of Bohol, PMI Colleges of Tagbilaran City, University of Cebu and National Capital Region (NCR) representative University of East during the week-long event held at the University of Cebu campus. Aside from chess, swimming, beach volleyball and weightlifting, the Philippines will also compete in seven other sports in Kazan. These are athletics, archery, badminton, basketball, fencing, table tennis and tennis. Philippine Federation of Bodybuilders, Inc. (PFBBI) vice-president Col. ,Ariel Querubin was designated as the country's official flag-bearer in Kazan.

In the 2011 Shenzhen Universiade, host China emerged as the overall champion with 75 golds, 39 silvers and 31 bronzes for a total of 145 medals. Russia was a far second overall with 42 golds, 45 silvers and 45 bronzes, while Korea was a distant third with 28 golds, 21 silvers and 30 bronzes.

Japan came in fourth overall with 23-26-28, while the United States wound up fifth with 17-22-11.

Southeast Asian Games campaigners Thailand finished 10th overall with 7-2-9, while Indonesia wound up 20th with 3-1-2. Vietnam finished 48th with 0-1-3, while Malaysia came in 49th with 0-1-2.

The Philippines finished 51st in the overall medal tally with one silver medal, ahead of another SEA Game rival Singapore in the 152-nation, biennial competition.

Published on November 24, 2012by People's TonightEd Andaya<edandaya2003@yahoo.com>

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